Saint Peter’s Healthcare System ranked among nation’s top performers for quality and safety

– Only hospital in the New Brunswick area to make the list –

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (October 12, 2012) - Saint Peter’s Healthcare System announced today that it has been named one of the nation’s Top Performers on Key Quality Measures by The Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America.

Saint Peter’s was recognized by The Joint Commission for exemplary performance in the use of evidence-based care processes closely linked to positive patient outcomes in the key areas of heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia, and surgical care.

Saint Peter’s is one of 620 hospitals in the United States to earn the distinction of Top Performer on Key Quality Measures. In addition, Saint Peter’s is one of only 14 health care providers in New Jersey – and the lone hospital in the New Brunswick-Somerset County region – to be cited for excellence in 2012 by The Joint Commission.

“Status as a Joint Commission Top Performer is one of the highest and most coveted honors in all of health care,” said Ronald C. Rak, president and CEO of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System. “It means that Saint Peter’s is among the best of the best in patient care. I couldn’t be more proud of the Saint Peter’s physicians, nurses and support staff.”

The Saint Peter’s ranking was listed in “Improving America’s Hospitals: The Joint Commission Annual Report on Quality and Safety 2012.” An independent, not-for-profit organization, the Joint Commission is the nation's oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care. The Joint Commission is also a partner with the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. Those hospitals identified as attaining and sustaining excellence in accountability performance in 2012 represent approximately 18 percent of Joint Commission-accredited hospitals reporting core measure performance data.

“When we raise the bar and provide the proper guidance and tools, hospitals have responded with excellent results,” said Mark R. Chassin, MD, president, The Joint Commission. “This capacity for continual improvement points toward a future in which quality and safety defects are dramatically reduced and high reliability is sought and achieved with regularity. Such day-to-day progress will slowly but surely transform today’s health care system into one that achieves unprecedented performance outcomes for the benefit of the patients.”

The annual report also summarizes the performance of more than 3,300 Joint
Commission accredited hospitals on 45 accountability measures of evidence-based care processes closely linked to positive patient outcomes. While the data show impressive gains in hospital quality performance, improvements can still be made. Some hospitals perform better than others in treating particular conditions.

“We understand that what matters most to our patients is safe, effective care,” said Anthony Passannante Jr., MD, vice president and chief medical officer for Saint Peter’s Healthcare System. “That’s why Saint Peter’s has made an aggressive commitment to quality and positive patient outcomes through evidence-based care processes.”

About Saint Peter’s Healthcare System
Saint Peter’s Healthcare System Inc., parent company of the Saint Peter’s healthcare delivery system, is comprised of Saint Peter’s University Hospital, a 478-bed acute-care teaching hospital; Saint Peter’s Foundation, the fundraising arm of the hospital; and Saint Peter’s Health and Management Services Corporation, which oversees the system's outpatient facilities. These include the CARES Surgicenter; New Brunswick Cardiac Cath Lab; Community Care Services, Inc.; the Margaret McLaughlin McCarrick Care Center, Inc., a residential skilled nursing facility in Somerset; and Saint Peter’s Adult Day Center in Monroe Township. Saint Peter’s Healthcare System is sponsored by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen. For more information about Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, please visit www.saintpetershcs.com or call 732-745-8600.

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Saint Peter's University Hospital is a 478-bed acute-care teaching hospital sponsored by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen. Saint Peter's is a state-designated children's hospital and a regional perinatal center, and is a major clinical affiliate of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and an affiliate of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.